Chewy Butterscotch Zucchini Blondies

Zucchini season is finally here!  Hopefully you guys are zucchini fans, because I am planning to try out a bunch of new recipes.  First up, we have these seriously amazing blondies.  I have made this recipe twice in the past week.  This recipe doesn't require a mixer and it only dirties one pan.  Who knew you could add zucchini to a blondie and still have a rich and chewy cookie bar.  These are going to become a regular at my house.

Even though these have a bunch of brown sugar in them, they aren't overly sweet.  They have really really good flavor.  I added butterscotch chips to these, but you could add a different type of chip, if you prefer.  

Since the mixture is warm when you stir in all the ingredients a lot of the butterscotch chips will melt into the batter and make it extra yummy.  Just like with brownies, the extra chewy edges are my favorite.  I love these plain and they taste great for several days, but I also love them cut up extra small and served with ice cream.  Yum!!

These were a huge hit.  Even my niece and nephew loved these and they had no clue there was zucchini in there :)

You might also like:

Chocolate Zucchini Sheet Cake

Cinnamon Roll Zucchini Bread

Softest Zucchini Cookies with Browned Butter Frosting

Oatmeal Zucchini Coconut Sandwich Cookies with Chocolate Filling

Chewy Butterscotch Zucchini Blondies
(Printable Recipe)

11 Tbl. unsalted butter
2 c. light brown sugar, packed
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 large egg
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. finely grated zucchini
1 c. butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar together.  Remove from heat and cool for a few minutes.  Stir in the vanilla extract.  Quickly stir in the egg (remember the mixture is warm and you don't want the egg to scramble).  Stir in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Mixture will be thick and slightly dry at this point.  Stir in the zucchini and 3/4 cup of the butterscotch chips until evenly incorporated.

Spread into a 9x13-inch baking pan that has been lined with parchment paper and sprayed with cooking spray.  Top with remaining 1/4 cup of butterscotch chips.  Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.  Cool and cut into 24 squares.  

adapted from: Creations by Kara

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Strawberry Grape Marshmallow Salad

I can't seem to get enough strawberries during these hot Summer months.  Every time I go to the grocery store, those bright red berries call my name.  I often eat them plain or topped with a little sugar, but the other day, I realized I didn't have any kind of fruit salad recipe on the blog.  So, I got on that right away and threw together this super delicious fruit salad.

For this fruit salad, I decided to use sweet strawberries mixed with juicy red grapes.  The two different textures of fruit go great together.  AND because I am a sucker for marshmallows, I threw some of those in as well.  The dressing is sweet, tangy, creamy and flavored with a touch of orange. This fruit salad was a huge hit.

It's best when served within 24 hours.  After that, it will be tinted pink from the strawberries.  It still tastes good, just doesn't look as pretty.

What are your favorite fruits to use for fruit salad?

You might also like:

Orange Pineapple Punch

Strawberry Oreo Frozen Fruit Dessert

Orange Cream Fruit Dip

Chocolate Toffee Apple Dip

Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars with Strawberries

Strawberry Grape Marshmallow Salad
From: Jenn@eatcakefordinner
(Printable Recipe)

4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 c. plain Greek Yogurt
1/4 c. orange juice (about 1/2 an orange)
grated zest of 1/2 an orange
1/4 c. powdered sugar
1 Lb. red grapes
16 oz. strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 1/2 c. mini marshmallows

In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese and yogurt and mix together until smooth.  Add the orange juice, orange zest and powdered sugar and mix until combined.  Pour over the grapes, strawberries and marshmallows that have been placed in a large bowl.  Stir together until everything is evenly coated.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  Serves at least 8.  Best when served within 24 hours.    

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My Go-To Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

This is my go-to banana cake recipe.  I have been making it for several years and I always get recipe requests for this.  Sometimes I switch up the frosting.  I've tried vanilla buttercream, cream cheese frosting, Nutella frosting and all are fabulous.  I've been a bit obsessed with cream cheese frosting lately.  That tang from the cream cheese just hits the spot :)

Next time you have some brown bananas lying around, you have got to try this.  The cake is dense and loaded with flavor.  Top it with whatever frosting you prefer and you might just find yourself buying bananas and letting them go brown on purpose, so you can make this sweet dessert.

You might also like:

Banana Pudding Bundt Cake with White Chocolate Ganache

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Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
(Printable Recipe)

2 Tbl. unsalted butter, softened
2/3 c. sugar
1 large egg
1/2 c. non-fat plain Greek yogurt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 ripe bananas, mashed (about 3/4 cup)
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda

Cream Cheese Frosting
4 Tbl. unsalted butter, softened
4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
pinch of salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract (or 1 Tbl. vanilla bean paste)
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
milk, enough to reach desired consistency

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  For the cake: Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add the egg and mix to combine.  Add the yogurt and vanilla and mix well.  Mix in the mashed banana.  Add the flour, salt, baking soda and stir together just until combined.  Pour into a greased 8x8-inch baking dish.  Bake for 25 minutes or until the top springs back when lightly touched or a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool completely and frost.  Store leftover cake in the refrigerator. 

For the frosting: Beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy.  Add a pinch of salt and the vanilla and mix until blended.  Add one cup of powdered sugar and mix until combined.  Add remaining powdered sugar and enough milk, as needed, to reach desired spreading consistency.  Beat until smooth and fluffy and spread over cooled cake.  

Base cake recipe adapted from: Butter Yum 
Frosting from: Jenn@eatcakefordinner

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